2014 Short Session, Week 12

That’s a wrap! Senators wrapped up session after a midnight session on Friday where they approved a state budget. House members wrapped up their votes on Saturday.

But there’s a catch…legislators will return this week to agree on an actual adjournment date as the House made changes to the Senate’s original plan. And, on August 14th legislators will return for a brief session to take up any bills that might get vetoed by the Governor, wrap up any bills that got assigned to a conference committee, and wrap up nine different provisions in the adjournment resolutions.

There’s still one more catch….legislators will return AGAIN on November 17th for a special session to discuss Medicaid Reform and possibly Coal Ash. No word on how long this session will last.

So, while legislators have adjourned, they have not technically finished working. We should have a better idea of a plan to meet again in August later this week.

Relevant Bills with Action:

SB 744 Appropriations Act of 2014: This bill has been in the works since session started. When legislators couldn’t agree, they turned to appointing a 42 member conference committee. Last weekend, they reported that they had come to an agreement. The conference committee budget highlights are below. With the Governor’s signature, this will be the state budget for the 2014 fiscal year. View the Money Report for further explanation on the spending plan with accompanying page numbers listed after each highlight. Please note, it is difficult to capture all the provisions in the budget due to the amazing variety of the social work profession so information below is only a snapshot of changes.

Provides funds to support the costs related to the education of children in private psychiatric residential treatment facilities (F-6).

Provides funding for one year for group home residents who were determined to be ineligible for Medicaid personal care services on or after January 1, 2013. The maximum monthly payment is set at $464.30 and is based on providing 33 hours of service per eligible recipient (G-3).

Reduces General Fund appropriation for the Home and Community Care Block Grant (HCCBG) by 3%, leaving a balance of $31,808,889. Cuts are $969,549 (G-4).

Changes the income eligibility for the State-County Special Assistance (SA) Program from a method that bases income eligibility on the payment rate for the facility type where the recipient resides, to a method based on the federal poverty level for all recipients regardless of where they reside. The SA eligibility level is set at 100% of the Federal Poverty Level. Current recipients of SA are grandfathered in and will continue to receive SA. (G-8).

Provides funding to replace $4.5 million in federal block grant funds that counties lost in 2013-14 that was utilized to pay for Child Protective Services (CPS) workers. An additional $2.8 million in funding is provided effective October 1, 2014 to reduce county departments of social services caseloads to an average of 10 families per worker performing Child Protective Services assessments (G-9).

Provides $218,538 recurring and $125,750 nonrecurring funds for the implementation of drug screening for Work First Benefits applicants (G-10).

Provides funding through incentives and rebates to end the waiting list of the Aids Drug Assistance Program (G-11).

Provides $2.2 million for community-based crisis services (G-15).

Provider rates are cut, once again, by 1% (G-18).

Mental Health Drug Management: Authorizes DHHS to impose controls including prior authorization, utilization review criteria, and any other restrictions on mental health drugs (G-18 and pg 87 of the budget).

Provision to hold special session in November to discuss Medicaid Reform (pg 87, budget).

Other Bills of Interest with Action:

HB 884 Dropout Prevention/Recovery Pilot Charter School: This bill establishes a two year pilot program for one charter school who has had students drop out. The purpose is to increase graduation rates and reengage students. The bill passed the House and Senate and was presented to the Governor for signature.

SJR 881 Adjournment: This bill directs legislators to adjourn but to return on August 14th and November 17th. As mentioned above, the November special legislative session will be focused on Medicaid Reform.

HJR 1276 Adjournment: The House version of the adjournment resolution. While the dates to return are the same as the Senate, the House has a few more issues to keep alive including any bills related to autism insurance reform. The House gives the Senate until Wednesday, August 6th to take up the new adjournment resolution.

These legislative updates are provided by the National Association of Social Workers, North Carolina Chapter (NASW-NC). NASW membership support advocacy efforts on behalf of social workers and their clients at the state and national level. Become a member of your professional association today by joining online at http://www.socialworkers.org.